Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe arrived in Rockport to attend the 34th Annual Maine Fishermen’s Forum at the Samoset Resort last Friday, and while on a walkabout, discussed various issues with attendees, including the recently signed stimulus package.
She received numerous comments of support and approval for her vote, and when asked, spoke candidly about the controversial “earmarks” in the bill, saying those are keeping people employed.
Snowe also outlined how hard it was to get certain provisions into the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that directly impact the commercial and small business fishing industry.
“More than 97 percent of businesses in Maine are small businesses,” she said.
In her prepared statement, Snowe acknowledged the “plight of the groundfish industry illustrates how the perfect storm of regulatory, scientific, bureaucratic, economic, and judicial conditions can cripple an industry and threaten thousands of livelihoods.”
She also said the New England Fishery Management Council is working to develop a scientifically and economically sound groundfish plan for fishing year 2010, and the challenge is keeping the industry and fishing communities “afloat” until the plan is unfolded.
However, Snowe said the National Marine Fisheries Service has chosen to adopt an unnecessarily rigid approach that threatens to regulate the industry out of existence.
“If the NMFS has its way,” said Snowe, “harvests could be reduced up to 60 percent, costing over 200 million in lost revenue. This is neither necessary or acceptable.”
“That’s why I co-sponsored legislation this week to replace NMFS’ plan with a package approved in Sept. 2008 by the Council [NEFMC]. I also continue to push for greater scientific accountability from the Northeast Fishery Science Center, additional funding for stock assessments, and cooperative research, and funding to buy back permits from those who wish to leave the industry.”
Snowe also said it is paramount that relationships within the industry improve, and the regulatory, scientific and fishing industries work on a new cooperativeness that would lead to improved trust.
Earlier in the day, her staff discussed the recently passed stimulus package and the included provisions for shoring up the fishing industry in the short run.
Staffers Matthew Walker, Wally Hsueh, and Michael Conathan outlined how the recovery act includes Small Business Administration money and critical tax provisions to provide significant benefits to fisherman.
Assuring the fishing businessmen, Conathan said, “She [Snowe] gets it, believe me, she gets it.”
According to Walker, who is a Mainer, “she [Snowe] sent us to Maine last summer to go out on a lobster boat. She felt it was critical for us to be here. How can we know what is needed unless we’re here to listen?”
Saying the experience was invaluable, Walker also says it shows Snowe’s office cares.
Offering an observation, one businessman said fishermen don’t consider what they do is a business. “Yes, it is a livelihood,” was the comment, “but it is a business and to be successful must have structure, and know about lending and taxes.”
Walker said the bill allocates $375 million to allow for temporary waivers or reductions in the fees the Small Business Association (SBA) charges to lenders and borrowers, and requires the SBA to give borrowers and smaller banks priority in receiving fee relief.
The measure will allow a small fishing business to immediately write off (instead of depreciate over a period of five, seven or more years), up to $250,000 of new investment.
The bill also allows carrying back of 2008 business losses for five years instead of two. Under this provision a fisherman can offset prior-year profits with this year’s losses and obtain an immediate tax refund to be used to sustain operations, or hire personnel.
Also, current law requires small business owners to pay quarterly estimated taxes totaling 110 percent of their liability in the previous year. To encourage cash flows, the stimulus legislation reduces the quarterly estimates to 90 percent of last year’s tax liability.
Going beyond tax incentives, and answering direct concerns of fisherman for short-term assistance, the new law allows for the creation of a loan stabilization program. Within the Small Business Administration (SBA), the program will allow fishermen with an existing small business loan to apply for a no-interest, no-fee government-guaranteed loan of up to $35,000 to help with existing payments.
Snowe hopes fishermen will take advantage of this particular incentive to prevent defaulting on boats, equipment, traps, etc., and stay in business.
Terry Stockwell of the Maine Dept. of Marine Resources implored that the SBA application, and any loan process, and website be user friendly, and he was assured by Snowe’s office that the process will be streamlined.
For more information visit Sen. Snowe’s website at www.snowe.senate.gov.
